According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Transportation (http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2012/dot0812.html), new regulations will require airlines to include taxes and fees in the published price for a flight, rather than tacking on the fees just before purchase. In addition to publishing the full price for airfare, airlines also must disclose any and all baggage fees.

And that’s not all. Big strides are being made in the customer service sector of the airline industry. Passengers are now able to hold a flight reservation without payment or cancel a flight without incurring fines for up to 24 hours after the reservation is made a week or more before the scheduled flight.

Airlines now will be required to notify passengers of all delays over 30 minutes as well as flight cancellations and will be forbidden to increase ticket prices after purchase.